STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2066

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 2079

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committees on Human Services and Public Housing and Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2079 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LIBRARIES,"

 

beg leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to make an appropriation to expand Hawaii State Library services for the blind and physically handicapped to other public library branches in the State as a pilot project.

 

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Office of the State Librarian, the Hawaii Association of the Blind, the Hawaii Association of Parents of the Visually Impaired, Hui O Na Makamaka Friends of the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, and one individual.  Testimony supporting the intent of this measure was submitted by the Department of Human Services. 

 

     Your Committees find that library resources for the blind and physically handicapped should be expanded to additional libraries so that individuals with visual impairments may have greater freedom to visit different libraries that may be closer to home, and have increased access to the information, catalogues, databases, and computer systems that libraries provide to the sighted public. 

 

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Human Services and Public Housing and Education that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2079 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Human Services and Public Housing and Education,

 

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair

 

____________________________

SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair